Politics & Government
Brentwood Dodges a Redistricting Bullet For Now
Brentwood residents heaved a sigh of relief at the vote to retain most of the historic boundaries of the 3rd District.
Brentwood residents welcomed a vote from the Board of Supervisors last week that approved a redistricting plan without fracturing existing historic relationships, according to Brentwood Community Council president, Nancy Freedman.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a redistricting plan that would keep Brentwood in the 3rd Supervisorial District with a surprise turnover vote from Mark Ridley-Thomas. Following a heated two-day hearing that included extensive testimony from hundreds of constituents, supervisors voted to adopt the “A3” plan. The plan would minimize shifting communities out of their current electoral districts and retain much of the same boundaries that have already been in place.
The surprise vote by Ridley-Thomas was to expedite passage so that the boundaries can be challenged in court as a violation of the Voting Rights Act. Both Ridley-Thomas and Supervisor Gloria Molina believe strongly that the new boundaries should have created a second district of primarily Latino voters.
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“...In 1990, the Supervisors intentionally engaged in dilution of the Latino community’s voting strength; every effort should have been made to avoid a similar outcome this time,” wrote Ridley-Thomas on his website, implying that the Board of Supervisors voted with the intent to dilute the Latino voting block from representation.
Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, serving his final term, strongly encouraged residents of his 3rd Supervisorial District to participate in the discussion. Over the two-day hearing, hundreds of constituents spoke and thousands more wrote letters and emails to express their concern.
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The two opposing plans would have placed Brentwood in a long, narrow 4th District that would have encompassed the coastal areas. Brentwood rejected the plan because it would have severed the historic connection we share with our district encompassing the Santa Monica Mountains region and the relationships and coalition building Brentwood has built with other Westside communities.